Historic Building Assessment

There is sometimes a perception that archaeologists focus mainly on what can be found under the ground.

That is obviously an important component of our work, but surface remains and, in particular, above-ground structures are an integral part of the same resource. Fortunately we never forget that. Historic building assessment, recording and analysis are a major area of endeavour and expertise for us, hardly surprisingly given that we are the appointed consultants for some of our finest historic buildings. We have carried out numerous archaeological building recording projects at Christ Church, Rochester and Salisbury Cathedrals, but we also provide these services for all kinds of clients, including private property owners.

16 - 17 Turl Street

At 16-17 Turl Street, Oxford, we carried out a detailed programme of recording on a pair of Grade II listed buildings, straddling the line of the Saxon and medieval city wall. The properties had been in use as a private club until recently, and were to be converted into a hub for the city's student community. The work involved stripping away areas of modern plasterboard and similar detritus, much of it only inserted in 2004. Victorian fireplaces were exposed in several rooms (and will remain on view). Elsewhere, areas of much earlier stonework were revealed, causing us to question the late 18th-century date for these properties. We now think No 16 at least is 100 years or more earlier than this.

The front of No 17 is now features a fine picture window with a semi-circular top. When we looked carefully on the inside, however, we noticed that the decorative coving turned towards the street. This suggests that there had been a bay window here before the current one was inserted.

The masonry here had been hidden behind modern plasterboard on No 16, and had been badly damaged at some point in the past. Despite this enough survives to suggest that it formed one side of an opening on the battlements of the medieval city wall.

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Latest News

Rochester Cathedral - major new project begins

The Hidden Treasures, Fresh Expressions project at Rochester Cathedral is now under way. We will soon be carrying out major excavations in the Crypt (which is being prepared for our work), but in the meanwhile have made several smaller but stille exciting discoveries:

A lost (or more exactly hidden) medieval door in a small room just off the Crypt. The door had been hidden behind old storage cupboards and shelving, and we didn't know whether it had been completely blocked or destroyed. It was great to see it in good condition!

Original wall paintings on the crown of a 13th-century arch in the Crypt, thought to have been removed when the arch was blocked up in the late 18th century.

Pencil graffiti dating from 1835 and 1907 in the Chapter Room.

We will be posting more news from this project here and on our Facebook page (see link to the right).